McCalls M8282 had been on my pattern wish list for a while. I have fond memories of ruched dresses from the 1980s and also, I love designs with a hint of mid-century vintage about them. I considered sewing the maxi length sleeveless version which would make a lovely easy-to-wear summer holiday dress, but ultimately selected the puff sleeved, knee length version. I felt that it would make a more versatile day dress for Spring. View C is intended to be quite short, but I added a few inches to the skirt and the frill to create a midi length.

For my first attempt I used a light crepe of a similar texture to that shown on the envelope photograph in this picture it looks as if the ruching has been supported by sewing it to the main fabric at multiple points. With no intermediate support, just gathering at the side seams, the bodice overlay hung like a bag in front of my tummy. I tried tacking the overlay to the bodice at regular intervals, but I was never really happy with the result. The pattern suggests using crepe or charmeuse, but I don’t think the ruching is going to work without extra support in any drapey fabric. The pattern also suggests cotton blends and gingham which I feel are more appropriate.

I love designs with a hint of mid-century vintage about them

I had to try again, but this time I was not taking any chances. I used a slightly stiffer fabric (Lady McElroy Cobra Corsage Aqua Marlie-Care Cotton Lawn) and decided to gather and sew in the ruching at shorter intervals across the body. I marked vertical lines on the reverse of the bodice overlays 10cm from the centre lines back and front. Then I put a line of gathering stitches 1cm either side of the marked lines. I chose not to sew the overlay directly to the bodice on these lines as that would interfere with the shaping created by the princess seams in the underlayer and lining. Instead, I cut a length of bias binding the same depth as the lining and sewed the gathered fabric along the marked lines to the tape. I originally intended to remove the gathering stitches, but in the end, I kept them because I like the tighter ruching effect that they make.
I am delighted with my second version of M8282. I’ve made several tops and dresses with this kind of pretty elasticated shoulder detail and this time I was careful to make sure that the shoulders were not too far apart. If the neckline is too wide the shoulders can easily slip off, but a minor adjustment (or the use of bra strap retainers) easily resolves the problem. I expect that with a stiff fabric and an immaculately fitted bodice, the ruching can work exactly as described in the pattern instructions. However, if you are using a fabric that is at all soft or drapey I recommend adding extra support for the ruching.

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